Generic Conceptual Elements

1) “Reality Unveiled” (original by @thepalalias)

”“Generic Conceptual Elements”“

• The protagonist doesn’t speak (voice-over)

• One man’s journey through memories or realities as vignettes.

• A voice over conversation holds the story together.

2) “Stowaway” (original by @atticusd)

”“Generic Conceptual Elements”“

• A person in a perpetual search for himself/herself.

• A man dealing with ordinary conflicts with extraordinary circumstances in the background.

• A person with the ability to jump from one human host to another at will.

3) “The world as a small town” (original by @andres)

”“Generic Conceptual Elements”“

• A docufiction in which we see the contrasts of different cultures or points of view.

• Take advantage of different cities. Portrait the characteristics of each place. Avoiding cliches.

• Every person speak his/her own language (lot of subtitles)

• 5 minutes per character is connected through friends of friends.

• This is not a blockbuster. Simple idea that needs developing in the story but no three act thing.

4) “Cogito ergo sum” (original by @lolo)

”“Generic Conceptual Elements”“

• The main character is chased by an unknown entity throughout the film.

• Different physical and virtual worlds are depicted.

5) “Headless man” (suggested by @RRRR)

”“Generic Conceptual Elements”“

• An episodic piece: 10-15 parallel short stories.

• The events in each short story revolve around time travel or dimension travel (actual or the want to).

6) “OCCUPY” (original by @Imaginate)

”“Generic Conceptual Elements”“

• Italian Neorealism storytelling style.

• A contemporary class war story.

• Two antagonists have to work together for the common good.

• The story is about a “group” — a family, an organization, or a business that is unique.

• the story has a conflict when a hero suddenly realizes that what the group is doing is wrong — and what happens when he decides to rebel against tradition.

• the story has a hero can make his case and help change the group, a “sacrifice” must be made leading to one of three endings: join, burn it down… or commit “suicide.”

• the story has a newbie/rebel that realizes his mentor is not only false, but so is the group.

• the story has individuals that have value that trumps the group and celebrates those who decide to stand up against conformity.

7) “Patient Zero” (original by @L1N3ARX)

”“Generic Conceptual Elements”“

• A significant breakthrough in the field of neuroscience.

• The main character is in an almost permanent state of global amnesia.

• The main character takes control of other people’s bodies at unexpected intervals.

• The main character is chased by special forces.

8) “Peter: Patient Zero” by @B3Guy (originals “Stowaway” and “Patient Zero” by @atticusd and @L1N3ARX respectively)

”“Generic Conceptual Elements”“

• A structure revolving around people named Peter who at first do not seem to be connected.

• The main character has flashbacks of previous lives that seem somehow recent.

• The main character is hunted by secret special forces (element also present in Patient Zero by @L1N3ARX idea)

• The figure of a scientist who helps the main character throughout the film but still seems suspicious.

• The main character is given a new identity in the end.

• The main character is set free in the end.

9) “lalaland” (original by @lolo)

”“Generic Conceptual Elements”“

• Different styles, one per directing unit but with unifiers along the way like three or four gestures in the same scene setups. The point is: we all feel the same.

• The political consequences that internet has on the traditional human social structure depicted through the local conflicts of several groups of people all around the world.

10) “We” by @lolo (based on original idea by @Reckless)

”“Generic Conceptual Elements”“

• A global event occurs: different cultures react in different ways.

• Every team will develop a story to show the cultural differences between them and how those differences make them react in a different way to a global event. In any case the stories will have unifiers in order to get a cohesive full-length piece.

• A choral structure a la Gonzalez Iñarritu’s “Babel” where the characters share common but distant relationships.

• Different lines of conflict that lead to three global dramatic arches, the global event being the one that starts and end each arch.

• If we can agree more unifiers or more specific unifiers (i.e.: relationship between the characters: a father, a child, a cat, a grandpa, a boss, a friend of facebook, a rockstar and her fans, a mother and his son from one country, a father and his daughter from another country,…) then every director could write his own segment and enrich the film with the different visions and cultural differences.

11) “If on a winter’s night a traveller” (original by @Elenion)

”“Generic Conceptual Elements”“

• 5 acts structure: Introduction/OPENING – BREAK - Body/MAIN TENSION - 2nd break/CLIMAX - End /RESOLUTION

• The Story is characterized by ACTION UNITY.

• The Story is carried out by different subjects through different places, events, relationships.

• Every fragment continues the story from the point where the precedent fragment stopped, flawlessly and gracefully.

• ACTION UNITY: the PROTAGONIST (all the subjects) has only one AIM and many ANTAGONISTS (one for each subject). The ANTAGONISTS are the typical human issues: like Solitude, Love, Friendship, Spirituality, Death, Fear, Money etc (these should be subjected to poll). These ANTAGONISTS obstaculates/helps/stimulates the protagonist's path.

• SUGGESTED AIM: “The making of a family” (the progression of this makinf, like a bildungroman). Because it fits perfectly for the role of AIM, it is a good representation of one of the universal RESOLUTIONS of life and can fit well our complex project.

• The story portaits the building of a family: from solitude to the pursuing or the failing of this aim.

• No repetitions of gestures, movements, actions, situations that give the idea of 'restart' because it is damn boring, it breaks the magic of cinema, and seems like a gross attempt to give unity and to mask some inability.

• Aesthetics continuity.

• The use of several genres to portray different parts of the movie.

12) “Free Concept by @RRRR”

”“Generic Conceptual Elements”“

• Something particular and something generic which ties it all together. The particular could be a sheet of paper (although this would have to be made particular - by it's colour, a print or something else - as described by palalias), it could be the lead or whatever one comes up with. The generic could be coffee, a certain type of clothing, work, cars, food. The point about both the generic and the particular “Common” is introducing some kind of meaning.

13) “Free Concept by @Aksel”

”“Generic Conceptual Elements”“

• Have just one script, and all the Directors around the world will shoot his or her version of the same script.

• No script, just a word such as: Love, Hunger, Crisis, Happiness, Shit, Fear… etc. After we decide which topic we like, each Director will write his or her script and shoot it.

• It could also be implemented as a series of shortfilms (1-3 minutes) with the same script shot in different styles, and merged together in one full-length film (by @lolo)

14) “Human Trafficking” (original by @Imaginate)

”“Generic Conceptual Elements”“

• the story is about a life problem that strikes when we least expect it

• the story has a hero who's main goal is learning how to accept life on life’s terms.

• the story has a main conflict each hero fights hardest against, is simple: acceptance.

• the story has a “wrong way” to attack the mysterious problem, usually a diversion from confronting the pain, and… a solution that involves “acceptance” of a hard truth the hero has been fighting, and the knowledge it’s the hero that must change, not the world around him.

• the story is about the “Triumph of the Human Spirit”

• the story contains a 'judas' character that betrays the rest of the group

• the story contains multiple protagonists and has an ending that is more open than closed. This multi-narrative/mini-plot/choral structure eg. (Crash, Babel)

15) “Secrets” (original by @Imaginate)

• the story includes a “monster/ghost” that is supernatural in its powers — even if its strength derives from insanity ― and “evil” at core.

• the story includes a “house,” meaning an enclosed space that can include a family unit, an entire town, or even “the world.”

• the story includes someone is guilty of bringing the monster in the house… a transgression that can include ignorance.

• the story opens with something visual, fresh, weird, or mysterious that asks questions whose answers we do not know.

• the story has an incident that disrupts the status quo in the hero’s world and sets his story in motion

• the story has something that happens that cuts off any possible return to the status quo;he is challenged at the point of his internal need for change.

• the stories protagonist(s) makes a plan to reach a goal.

• the story has something terrible that will happen if the protagonist(s) doesn't reach his goal.

• the story has something terrible that will happen thing will happen if the protagonist(s) doesn’t grow and change.

• the story has a crisis where the hero’s plan fails; all hope is lost.

• the story has a hero that makes a new plan that requires him to grow and do something he’s never done before at the most basic level of his deepest need for change. The new plan results from the new person relying on a new capability.